Air conditioner for vehicle

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to an air conditioner for a vehicle, which can remarkably improve resistance against an air flow in an air passageway, thereby enhancing efficiency. The air conditioner for a vehicle includes: a case having an air inlet, an air outlet, and an air passageway formed therein; a blower unit for blowing air to the air inlet; and a cooling means and a heating means disposed in the air passageway of the case in an air flow direction in order, wherein the air outlet of the case includes a floor outlet and vent outlets, the floor outlet and the vent outlets are arranged below the heating means in a height direction, and the floor outlet is arranged within a range of the width of the heating means.

This application claims priority from Korean Patent Application Nos.10-2018-0033203 filed on Mar. 22, 2018 and 10-2019-0019982 filed on Feb.20, 2019. The entire contents of these applications are incorporatedherein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an air conditioner for a vehicle, andmore particularly, to an air conditioner for a vehicle, which isinstalled at a rear seat of the vehicle to air-condition the rear seatof the vehicle independently from a front air conditioner for a vehicle.

Background Art

An air conditioner for a vehicle is an apparatus for cooling or heatingthe interior of the vehicle by cooling or heating through the process ofintroducing outdoor air into the interior of the vehicle or circulatingindoor air of the vehicle. Such an air conditioner for a vehicleincludes an evaporator for cooling the inside of an air-conditioningcase; a heater core for heating the inside of the air-conditioning case;and a mode converting door for selectively blowing the air cooled by theevaporator or heated by the heater core toward parts of the interior ofthe vehicle.

In case of vehicles with a wide interior space, for instance, deluxecars, vans, or four-wheel drive vehicles commonly called “RV”, the airconditioner for a vehicle does not provide sufficient cooling or heatingeffect to the rear seat since being formed to discharge air for coolingor heating from a vent duct mounted at an instrument panel of the frontof the interior of the vehicle. In order to solve such a problem, such avehicle with the wide interior space is equipped with a rear airconditioner installed between a side out panel and a luggage trim toassist cooling performance and heating performance to the rear seat.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a conventional rear air conditionerfor a vehicle. As shown in FIG. 1, the conventional rear air conditionerfor a vehicle includes a blower disposed at one side. In a cooling mode,an air discharge passageway 2 in which air passing through the heatercore 1 flows is closed. In a heating mode, an air discharge passageway 4in which air passing through the evaporator 3 flows is closed. In amixing mode, the air discharge passageway 2 near the heater core ispartially opened and the air discharge passageway 4 near the evaporatoris also partially opened, so that the air discharge passageways 2 and 4communicate with each other and the air passing the evaporator 3 and theair passing the heater core 1 are mixed together. A temp door 7rotatably mounted in the case 6 is disposed in an air passageway 5.

The conventional rear air conditioner for a vehicle can adjusttemperature in a direction that the air passing the evaporator 3 and theair passing the heater core 1 are mixed well. However, because the tempdoor 7 serving to adjust temperature is located in the middle of the airpassageway 5, the temp door 7 is vibrated and generates noise accordingto resistance of the air. Moreover, because the temp door 7 is locatedin the air passageway 5, it impedes the flow of air, so reduces airvolume.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing another conventional rear airconditioner for a vehicle. As shown in FIG. 2, the conventional rear airconditioner for a vehicle includes a case 10. The case 10 includes: anair blowing passage 11 having indoor air and outdoor air inlets 11 a and11 b formed at one end; a vent outlet 12 communicating with a vent ductfor blowing air toward a roof of the vehicle from the air blowingpassage 11; and a floor outlet 13 communicating with the floor duct forblowing air toward the floor of the vehicle. The case 10 has one airpassageway 14 extending from the air blowing passage 11 to the ventoutlet 12 and the floor outlet 13.

A blower unit 20 for forcedly introducing indoor air and outdoor airthrough the indoor air and outdoor air inlets 11 a and 11 b is mountedin the air blowing passage 11, and an evaporator 30 is verticallymounted in the air passageway 14 a which is the closest to the blowerunit 20. A heater core 40 is approximately vertically mounted downstreamof the evaporator 30 to be spaced apart at a predetermined interval, anda warm air passageway 14 b is formed at a rear portion of the heatercore 40 to maintain a predetermined interval from the case 10.

A temperature adjusting door 50 is mounted between the evaporator 30 andthe heater core 40 to be rotated around a shaft part 51 in order toprevent inflow of air into the heater core 40 in the cooling mode and tointroduce air into the heater core 40 in the heating mode. The coolingmode, the heating mode, and the mixing mode are decided depending on thelocation of the temperature adjusting door 50. That is, if thetemperature adjusting door 50 is rotated to the position indicated bythe dotted line and closes a cold air passageway 14 c, it is the heatingmode. If the temperature adjusting door 50 is rotated to the positionindicated by the solid line and prevents the flow of air toward theheater core 40, it is the cooling mode. If the temperature adjustingdoor 50 is rotated to the position indicated by the two short dashlines, it is the mixing mode.

In the mixing mode, some of cold air exchanged heat after passingthrough the evaporator 30 passes the heater core 40, and the rest doesnot pass the heater core 40 but passes the cold air passageway 14 c. Inthis instance, warm air exchanged heat after passing the heater core 40and cold air which did not pass the heater core 40 are mixed in a mixingzone (MZ) formed above the evaporator 30 and the heater core 40, andthen, are discharged to the interior of the vehicle. In this instance,the reference numeral 60 is a blowing mode converting door mountedbetween the vent outlet 12 and the floor outlet 13 to rotate around theshaft part 61. The blowing mode converting door 60 closes the ventoutlet 12 or the floor outlet 13 or makes air flow to the vent outlet 12and the floor outlet 13.

Such a conventional rear air conditioner for a vehicle has adisadvantage in that temperature mixability is not good due todifferences in cross section area and in passage resistance between thewarm air passageway 14 b and the cold air passageway 14 c. Furthermore,the conventional rear air conditioner for a vehicle has anotherdisadvantage in that the mixing zone (MZ) in the case is small due to aspace limit that the rear air conditioner is installed at the rear seatof the vehicle and there is a great temperature difference between thedischarged airs. Additionally, the conventional rear air conditioner fora vehicle can keep a distribution amount of the air discharged to thetwo sides constant since there is resistance in the air passagewaystructure inside the rear air conditioner, but air volume may be reducedand noise is generated if air distribution is improved by resistance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve theabove-mentioned problems occurring in the prior arts, and it is anobject of the present invention to provide an air conditioner for avehicle, which can remarkably improve resistance against an air flow inan air passageway, thereby enhancing efficiency.

To accomplish the above object, according to the present invention,there is provided an air conditioner for a vehicle, including: a casehaving an air inlet, an air outlet, and an air passageway formedtherein; a blower unit for blowing air to the air inlet; and anevaporator and a heater core disposed in the air passageway of the casein an air flow direction in order, wherein the air outlet of the caseincludes a floor outlet and a vent outlet, the floor outlet and the ventoutlet are arranged below the heater core in a height direction, and thefloor outlet is arranged within a range of the width of the heater core.

The air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention canenhance efficiency since air passes through the entire face of theevaporator in the vent mode, and minimize air passage resistance of airand reduce loss of air pressure and air volume since the cold airpassing through the evaporator is guided by the second temperatureadjusting door and the floor mode door to be directly transferred to thevent outlet and the air passing through the heater core in the heatingmode is directly transferred to the floor outlet.

Additionally, the air conditioner for a vehicle according to the presentinvention can adjust the volume of air to make up for insufficient airvolume by adjusting the second temperature adjusting door since variousmode doors are disposed in the vicinity of the mixing zones where theair passing through the first cold air passageway, the air passingthrough the second cold air passageway, and the air passing through thewarm air passageway are mixed together.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the following detailed description ofthe preferred embodiments of the invention in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a conventional rear air conditionerfor a vehicle;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing another conventional rear airconditioner for a vehicle;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing an air conditioner for a vehicleaccording to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a vent mode of the air conditionerfor a vehicle according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a heating mode of the air conditionerfor a vehicle according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a mixing mode of the air conditionerfor a vehicle according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing an air conditioner for a vehicleaccording to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a view showing a cooling mode of the air conditioner for avehicle according to the second preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 9 is a view showing a heating mode of the air conditioner for avehicle according to the second preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 10 is a view showing a mixing mode of the air conditioner for avehicle according to the second preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 11 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Hereinafter, technical structure of an air conditioner for a vehicleaccording to exemplary embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing an air conditioner for a vehicleaccording to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. Asshown in FIG. 3, the air conditioner for a vehicle according to thefirst preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a case 100,a blower unit 150, an evaporator 102, a heater core 103, a temperatureadjusting means, and various mode doors 116 and 117.

The case 100 includes an air includes an air inlet formed at one side ofthe blower unit 150, which is an entrance of the case 100, to introduceair into the case 100, and an air outlet formed at an exit side of thecase 100 to discharge air. The air outlet includes a floor outlet 112 aand a pair of vent outlets 112 b and 112 c. The vent outlets include afirst vent outlet 112 b and a second vent outlet 112 c which communicatewith each other. The case 100 has an air passageway, and the blower unit150 is mounted inside the case 100 to forcedly send air to the air inletof the case 100.

When the air conditioner is installed at a rear seat of the vehicle, oneof the vent outlets 112 b and 112 c is mounted to send air toward theleft side of the rear seat of the vehicle and the other is mounted tosend air toward the right side of the rear seat. Moreover, the ventoutlet may be formed on the contrary to the above, and the rear airconditioner for a vehicle may be changed according to an installationplace at the rear seat. It will be described later.

The evaporator 102 and the heater core 103 are mounted in the airpassageway of the case 100 in order in an air flow direction. In thisembodiment, the evaporator 102 may be an evaporator for exchanging heatbetween refrigerant and air, and the heater core 103 may be a heatercore for exchanging heat between cooling water and air.

The temperature adjusting means adjusts the degree of opening so thatthe air passing the evaporator 102 selectively flows in the heater core103. The temperature adjusting means includes a first temperatureadjusting door 230 and a second temperature adjusting door 240.Hereinafter, the temperature adjusting means will be described indetail.

The mode doors 116 and 117 for the rear seat are a vent mode door 116for adjusting the degree of opening of the rear floor outlet 112 a and afloor mode door 117 for adjusting the degree of opening of the ventoutlets 112 b and 112 c. The mode doors 116 and 117 adjust the degree ofopening of the floor outlet 112 a and the vent outlets 112 b and 112 caccording to rotation to control the volume of discharged air. The flooroutlet 112 and the first vent outlet 112 b are formed to discharge airdownwardly, namely, in the direction of gravity, and the second ventoutlet 112 c is bypassed to discharge air upwardly, but the presentinvention is not limited to the above.

The air passageway in the case 100 includes a warm air passageway 270and a second cold air passageway 220. The warm air passageway 270 formsa flow passage through which the air passing through the evaporator 102passes the heater core 103. The first cold air passageway 210 forms aflow passage through which the air passing through the evaporator 102bypasses the heater core 103 downwardly. The second cold air passageway220 is formed to be spaced apart from the first cold air passageway 210,and forms a flow passage through that the air passing through theevaporator 102 bypasses the heater core 103 upwardly.

The air conditioner for a vehicle includes: the first cold airpassageway 210 through which the air passing through the evaporator 102flows upwardly and the second cold air passageway 220 through which theair passing through the evaporator 102 flows downwardly in the airpassageway of the case 100. Therefore, the air conditioner for a vehiclecan evenly utilize the entire area of the upper and lower portions ofthe evaporator 102, and can be compact-sized since having a mixing zonewhere the air passing through the two cold air passageways 210 and 220and the air passing through the warm air passageway 270 are mixedtogether.

Moreover, the floor outlet 112 a discharges air to the floor of the rearseat of the vehicle and mainly needs warm air. The warm air passingthrough the heater core 103 is guided through the warm air passageway270 by an extension part 254 and is directly transferred to the flooroutlet 112 a. That is, the extension part 254 is extended from a supportpartition 253 toward the floor outlet 112 a, so a warm air flow passagethrough which the warm air passing through the heater core 103 flowstoward the floor outlet 112 a is formed. The warm air passing throughthe warm air passageway 270 is guided and discharged to the floor outlet112 a in a straight line so as to minimize resistance to the warm airflow passage.

Furthermore, the evaporator 102 and the heater core 103 are spaced oneither side of the case 100 and are arranged in parallel with eachother. In this instance, the evaporator 102 and the heater core 103 neednot be exactly parallel with each other, and it is enough to arrange theevaporator 102 and the heater core 103 nearly parallel with each other.Additionally, the air introduced from the blower unit 150 flows from theleft to the right in the drawings, and then, is discharged to the flooroutlet 112 a formed to discharge air downwardly. The evaporator 102 andthe heater core 103 are disposed in an air flow direction in order.

Because the evaporator 102 and the heater core 103 are arranged parallelwith each other, a back-and-forth width of the vehicle having the case100 may be reduced. Therefore, the air conditioner for a vehicleaccording to the present invention is less restrictive in aninstallation space than other air conditioners. Especially, the airconditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention can securea great space when being arranged at the rear seat of the vehicle.

The first cold air passageway 210 is disposed between the inner wall ofa lower portion of the case 100 and the heater core 103, and the secondcold air passageway 220 is disposed between the inner wall of an upperportion of the case 100 and the heater core 103.

A partition wall 252 which makes the air passing through the evaporator102 flow to the first cold air passageway 210 and the second cold airpassageway 220 is formed inside the case 100. The partition wall 252 isformed between the evaporator 102 and the heater core 103 to surroundand support one side (lower side) of the heater core 103. In themeantime, the heater core 103 has a support partition 253 forsurrounding and supporting the other side (upper side) of the heatercore 103, and an extension part 254 extending from the support partition253.

The temperature adjusting means includes a first temperature adjustingdoor 230 and a second temperature adjusting door 240. The firsttemperature adjusting door 230 is disposed above the heater core 103 andbetween the evaporator 102 and the heater core 103 in order to adjustthe degree of opening of an inlet of the warm air passageway 270 and aninlet of the second cold air passageway 220. The second temperatureadjusting door 240 is disposed below the heater core 103 to adjust thedegree of opening of an outlet of the warm air passageway 270 and anoutlet of the first cold air passageway 210.

The first temperature adjusting door 230 is restricted in rotation bythe partition wall 252, and the second temperature adjusting door 240 isrestricted in rotation by the extension part 254 extending from thesupport partition 253. A rotary shaft of the first temperature adjustingdoor 230 is located at an end portion of the support partition 253. Thefirst temperature adjusting door 230 blocks the warm air passageway 270by touching one end portion of the partition wall 252 when being rotatedin the counterclockwise direction to the maximum, and blocks the secondcold air passageway 220 by touching a part of the inner wall of theupper portion of the case 100 when being rotated in the clockwisedirection to the maximum.

A rotary shaft of the second temperature adjusting door 240 is locatedat the other end portion of the partition wall 252. The secondtemperature adjusting door 240 blocks the warm air passageway 270 bytouching one end portion of the extension part 254 of the supportpartition 253 when being rotated in the counterclockwise direction tothe maximum, and blocks the first cold air passageway 210 by touching apart of the inner wall of the lower portion of the case 100 when beingrotated in the clockwise direction to the maximum.

The first temperature adjusting door 230 and the second temperatureadjusting door 240 are arranged at upper and lower portions of theheater core 103 to control the degrees of opening of the warm airpassageway and the two cold air passageway, thereby enhancingreliability in control of temperature by accurately controlling mixingof cold air and warm air.

The partition wall 252 surrounds and supports the heater core 103 andpartitions the first cold air passageway 210 and the second cold airpassageway 220. The air flowing toward the second cold air passageway220 among the airs divided by the partition wall 252 is introduced intothe second cold air passageway 220 and the warm air passageway 270 bythe first temperature adjusting door 230 and flows to the mixing zone(MZ) along the extension part 254, and the air flowing toward the firstcold air passageway 210 flows to the mixing zone (MZ) after going by thesecond temperature adjusting door 240. All of the airs passing throughthe first cold air passageway 210, the second cold air passageway 220and the warm air passageway 270 are mixed in the mixing zone (MZ).

The air mixed in the mixing zone (MZ) is discharged to the floor of therear seat of the vehicle through the floor outlet 112 a or discharged tothe rear seat through the vent outlets 112 b and 112 c.

The floor outlet 112 a and the first vent outlet 112 b are formed to bearranged close to each other toward the lower portion of the case 100 inthe vicinity of the mixing zone, and the second vent outlet 112 c isformed to pass through the case 100 and a partition wall 280 and faceupwards. In this instance, the partition wall 280 is spaced apart fromthe support partition 253 and the extension part 254 to divide the airflowing through the second cold air passageway 220 and the air flowingthrough the second vent outlet 112 c.

A floor mode door 117 for adjusting the degree of opening of the flooroutlet 112 a and a vent mode door 116 for adjusting the degree ofopening of the vent outlets 112 b and 112 c are disposed at one side ofthe floor outlet 112 a. The vent mode door 116 and the floor mode door117 are arranged at a position where the floor outlet 112 a and thefirst vent outlet 112 b face each other in order to adjust air volume byguiding cold air to the first vent outlet 112 b and guiding warm air tothe floor outlet 112 a by the second temperature adjusting door 240 andthe floor mode door 117.

The second temperature adjusting door 240 guides warm air to bedischarged to the floor outlet 112 a in a straight line and guide coldair to be discharged to the vent outlets 112 b and 112 c in a straightline.

Because the second vent outlet 112 c is formed at an end portion of thepassageway extending along the outer wall of the case 100 and thepartition wall 280, the air discharged to the second vent outlet 112 cis lower in pneumatic pressure than the air discharged to the first ventoutlet 112 b. That is, the air discharged to the first vent outlet 112 bis higher in pressure than the air discharged to the second vent outlet112 c.

If the air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present inventionis installed at the right of the rear seat of the vehicle, because theair discharged to the left of the rear seat becomes lower in pneumaticpressure, the first vent outlet 112 b which discharges air withpneumatic pressure higher than the second vent outlet 112 c may bemounted at the left.

Moreover, when the first temperature adjusting door 230 opens the secondcold air passageway 220 and the warm air passageway 270 and the secondtemperature adjusting door 240 opens the first cold air passageway 210,the air passing through the first cold air passageway 210 and the secondcold air passageway 220 and the air passing through the warm airpassageway 270 are mixed in the mixing zone (MZ), and it will bedescribed later referring to FIG. 6.

In this instance, the air passing through the second cold air passageway220 faces the mixing zone (MZ) among the support partition 253, theextension part 254 and the partition wall 280. That is, the floor outlet112 a is formed at the lower portion of the case 100 in the vicinity ofthe mixing zone (MZ), and the air passing through the heater core 103 isguided downwards through the extension part 254, and then, is directlydischarged to the floor outlet 112 a without any loss of air volume andair pressure.

The extension part 254 is extended downwardly from an end portion of thesupport partition 253 supporting one side of the heater core 103 andguides the air passing through the warm air passageway 270 to the mixingzone (MZ). Furthermore, the partition wall 280 is formed to be spacedapart from the extension part 254 at a predetermined interval and guidesthe air passing through the second cold air passageway 220 to the mixingzone (MZ). In the same manner, the air passing through the first coldair passageway 210 formed between the partition wall 252 and the case100 directly flows to the mixing zone (MZ).

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a vent mode of the air conditionerfor a vehicle according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

As shown in FIG. 4, the first temperature adjusting door 230 closes thewarm air passageway 270 and opens the second cold air passageway 220,and the second temperature adjusting door 240 opens the first cold airpassageway 210. Additionally, the floor mode door 117 closes the flooroutlet 112 a, and the vent mode door 116 opens the vent outlets 112 band 112 c. The air introduced through the blower unit 150 is cooledwhile passing through the evaporator 102, passes through the first coldair passageway 210 and the second cold air passageway 220, and then, isdischarged to the interior of the vehicle through the vent outlets 112 band 112 c.

In the vent mode, because the air introduced through the blower unit 150flows into the first cold air passageway 210 formed at the lower portionof the case 100 and the second cold air passageway 220 formed at theupper portion of the case 100, the air passes the entire face of theevaporator 102 to show the optimum performance of the evaporator 102.That is, the present invention can solve the problem of the conventionalrear air conditioner for a vehicle that cooling performance isdeteriorated since a part of the evaporator 102 is closed and the air isconcentrated to another part of the evaporator.

In addition, because the cold air passing through the first cold airpassageway 210 is transferred to the first vent outlet 112 b in astraight line by the second temperature adjusting door 240 closing thewarm air passageway 270 and the floor mode door 117 closing the flooroutlet 112 a, the air conditioner for a vehicle according to the presentinvention can reduce loss of air pressure and air volume.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a heating mode of the air conditionerfor a vehicle according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

Referring to FIG. 5, in the heating mode, the first temperatureadjusting door 230 opens the warm air passageway 270 and closes thesecond cold air passageway 220, and the second temperature adjustingdoor 240 closes the first cold air passageway 210. Moreover, the ventmode door 116 closes the vent outlets 112 b and 112 c and the floor modedoor 117 opens the floor outlet 112 a. The air introduced through theblower unit 150 is heated while passing through the heater core 103, andthen, is discharged to the interior of the vehicle through the flooroutlet 112 a.

In this instance, the air introduced through the blower unit 150 passesthrough the warm air passageway 270 after passing the heater core 103,and passes through the floor outlet 112 a in the straight line in orderto show the optimum performance without loss of air volume. That is, thewarm air passing through the warm air passageway 270 is guided by theextension part 254 facing the floor outlet 112 a and the secondtemperature adjusting door 240 closing the first cold air passageway 210to be directly transferred to the floor outlet 112 a. So, the airconditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention canminimize air passage resistance of air and reduce loss of air pressureand air volume.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a mixing mode of the air conditionerfor a vehicle according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

As shown in FIG. 6, in the mixing mode, the first temperature adjustingdoor 230 opens all of the second cold air passageway 220 and the warmair passageway 270, and the second temperature adjusting door 240 opensthe first cold air passageway 210. Furthermore, the vent mode door 116and the floor mode door 117 open all of the floor outlet 112 a and thevent outlets 112 b and 112 c. The air introduced through the blower unit150 is cooled while passing through the evaporator 102, and some of thecooled air is heated while passing through the heater core 103, andthen, is mixed in two mixing zones (MZ). After that, the air isdischarged to the interior of the vehicle through the floor outlet 112 aand the vent outlets 112 b and 112 c.

In FIG. 6, the mixing zone is a place where all of the air of the firstcold air passageway 210, the air of the second cold air passageway 220and the air of the warm air passageway 270 are mixed together. The modedoors 116 and 117 are located in the vicinity of the mixing zone (MZ),and the floor outlet 112 a and the first vent outlet 112 b are directlyconnected to the mixing zone (MZ).

Additionally, the air conditioner for a vehicle according to the presentinvention can accurately adjust temperature by the two temperatureadjusting doors 230 and 240. For instance, the second temperatureadjusting door 240 can adjust the volume of air flowing to the flooroutlet 112 a. That is, the two temperature adjusting doors 230 and 240can adjust the volume of air to make up for insufficient air volume.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing an air conditioner for a vehicleaccording to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7, the air conditioner for a vehicle according to thesecond preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a case100, a blower unit 150, an evaporator 102, a heater core 103, a firsttemperature adjusting door 230, a second temperature adjusting door 240,and a mode door 170.

An air outlet of the case 100 includes a floor outlet 112 a, a firstvent outlet 112 b, and a second vent outlet 112 c. The floor outlet 112a and the first vent outlet 112 b are arranged below the heater core 103in a height direction (h). Moreover, the floor outlet 112 a is arrangedwithin a range of the width (d) of the heater core 103. The first ventoutlet 112 b discharges air to the right in a width direction of thevehicle, and the second vent outlet 112 c discharges air to the left.

Because the floor outlet 112 a and the first vent outlet 112 b arearranged below the heater core 103, a conventional return passage forguiding the air passing through the heater core 103 to face upwards maybe omitted, so the width of the air conditioner can be reduced to becompact-sized. Furthermore, because the floor outlet 112 a is arrangedwithin the range of the width (d) of the heater core 103, the airconditioner can be reduced in size and reduce thermal loss and maximizeheating effect by minimizing a distance between the heater core 103 andthe floor outlet 112 a.

The case 100 includes a warm air passageway 270, a first cold airpassageway 210 and a second cold air passageway 220. The warm airpassageway 270 forms a flow passage in such a way that the air passingthrough the evaporator 102 passes through the heater core 103. The firstcold air passageway 210 forms a flow passage in such a way that the airpassing through the evaporator 102 bypasses the heater core 103downwardly, and the second cold air passageway 220 forms a flow passagein such a way that the air passing through the evaporator 102 bypassesthe heater core 103 upwardly.

The first temperature adjusting door 230 is arranged between theevaporator 102 and the heater core 103 to close an inflow passageway ofthe heater core 103 and a communication passageway of the mode door 170.The second temperature adjusting door 240 is arranged downstream theheater core 103 to separately guide an outflow passageway of the heatercore 103 and an outflow passageway of the evaporator 102.

The warm air passageway 270 is closed at an inflow position by the firsttemperature adjusting door 230, and is closed at an outflow position bythe second temperature adjusting door 240. Furthermore, the first coldair passageway 210 is closed by the second temperature adjusting door240, directly communicates with the mode door 170, and is closed by thefirst temperature adjusting door 230.

The mode door 170 is rotatably disposed between the floor outlet 112 aand the first vent outlet 112 b to adjust the degrees of opening of thefloor outlet 112 a and the first vent outlet 112 b. The mode door 170 isa rotary door of a dome shape.

The second cold air passageway 220, the warm air passageway 270, and thefirst cold air passageway 210 are formed downwardly in order. Thepassageways meet in mixing zones (MZ). The mixing zones (MZ) are zoneswhere the air passing through the warm air passageway 270, the airpassing through the first cold air passageway 210, and the air passingthrough the second cold air passageway 220 are mixed together, and areformed at the floor outlet 112 a and at the first vent outlet 112 b.

The mixing zones (MZ) are formed inside the rotary type mode door 170.That is, the mode door 170 is the dome shape that the inner face isstreamlined concavely, and the floor outlet 112 a is completely closedin a state where the mode door 170 is fully rotated in the clockwisedirection. In the state where the mode door 170 completely closes thefloor outlet 112 a, the inner face of the dome-shaped part faces anoutlet of the warm air passageway 270 located above.

In addition, in a state where the mode door 170 is fully rotated in thecounterclockwise direction, as shown in FIG. 7, the flow passage facingthe first vent outlet 112 b and the second vent outlet 112 c iscompletely closed. In the state where the flow passage facing the firstvent outlet 112 b and the second vent outlet 112 c is completely closed,the inner face of the dome-shaped part faces the first cold airpassageway 210 located at the left, and the outer face of thedome-shaped part faces an outlet of the second cold air passageway 220.In this instance, when the mode door 170 completely closes the firstvent outlet 112 b, the second cold air passageway 220 communicates withthe first vent outlet 112 b.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a cooling mode of the air conditioner for avehicle according to the second preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. Referring to FIG. 8, in the cooling mode, the firsttemperature adjusting door 230 closes the inlet of the warm airpassageway 270 and opens the second cold air passageway 220. The secondtemperature adjusting door 240 closes the outlet of the warm airpassageway 270 and opens the first cold air passageway 210. The modedoor 170 closes the floor outlet 112 a and opens the flow passage facingthe first vent outlet 112 b and the second vent outlet 112 c.

The air is cooled while passing through the evaporator 102, some of theair is blown to the first vent outlet 112 b and the second vent outlet112 c through the first cold air passageway 210, and the rest of the airis blown to the first vent outlet 112 b and the second vent outlet 112 cthrough the second cold air passageway 220. In this instance, the airblown from the blower unit 150 moves to the first vent outlet 112 bthrough the first cold air passageway 210 in a straight line. Therefore,the air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention canenhance cooling performance and increase air volume by discharging coldair cooled by the evaporator 102 to the vent outlets at the smallestdistance.

FIG. 9 is a view showing a heating mode of the air conditioner for avehicle according to the second preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. Referring to FIG. 9, in the heating mode, the firsttemperature adjusting door 230 opens the inlet of the warm airpassageway 270 and closes the second cold air passageway 220. The secondtemperature adjusting door 240 opens the outlet of the warm airpassageway 270 and closes the first cold air passageway 210. The modedoor 170 opens the floor outlet 112 a and closes the flow passage facingthe first vent outlet 112 b and the second vent outlet 112 c.

The air passing through the evaporator 102 is heated while passingthrough the heater core 103, and then, is blown to the floor outlet 112a through the warm air passageway 270. The warm air passing through theheater core 103 is directly discharged to the floor outlet 112 a locateddirectly below the heater core 103 within the range of the width of theheater core 103. Therefore, the air conditioner for a vehicle accordingto the present invention can reduce thermal loss and maximize heatingeffect by minimizing the distance between the heater core 103 and thefloor outlet 112 a.

FIG. 10 is a view showing a mixing mode of the air conditioner for avehicle according to the second preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, and FIG. 11 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 10.Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, the first temperature adjusting door 230opens all of the inlet of the warm air passageway 270 and the secondcold air passageway 220. The second temperature adjusting door 240 opensall of the outlet of the warm air passageway 270 and the first cold airpassageway 210. The mode door 170 opens all of the flow passages facingthe floor outlet 112 a, the first vent outlet 112 b and the second ventoutlet 112 c.

The air is cooled while passing through the evaporator 102. After that,some of the air is blown to the mixing zone (MZ) through the first coldair passageway 210, and some of the air is blown to the mixing zone (MZ)through the second cold air passageway 220. Moreover, the rest of theair passing through the evaporator 102 is heated while passing throughthe heater core 103, and then, is blown to the mixing zone (MZ) throughthe warm air passageway 270.

In this instance, as shown in FIG. 11, the air passing through the warmair passageway 270, the air passing through the first cold airpassageway 210 and the air passing through the second cold airpassageway 220 meet in the mixing zone (MZ), and form a first mixingzone (MZ1) at the floor outlet 112 a and a second mixing zone (MZ2) atthe first vent outlet 112 b. As described above, the two mixing zonesare formed since a mixing space is formed inside the rotary type modedoor 170. Finally, the air conditioner for a vehicle according to thepresent invention can enhance mixability of warm air and cold air andtemperature performance of discharged air to increase passengers'satisfaction. Furthermore, the air conditioner for a vehicle accordingto the present invention can enhance temperature performance throughoptimization of the flow passages and optimization in shape of the modedoor without increase of the entire size of the air conditioner.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and describedwith reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understoodby those of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications andequivalents may be made without deviating from the spirit or scope ofthe invention. Therefore, it would be understood that the technical andprotective scope of the present invention shall be defined by thetechnical idea as defined by the following claims and the equivalences.

What is claimed is:
 1. An air conditioner for a vehicle comprising: acase having an air inlet, an air outlet, and an air passageway formedtherein; a blower unit for blowing air to the air inlet; and a coolingmeans and a heating means disposed in the air passageway of the case inan air flow direction in order, wherein the air outlet of the caseincludes a floor outlet and vent outlets, wherein the floor outlet andthe vent outlets are arranged below the heating means in a heightdirection, and wherein the floor outlet is arranged within a range ofthe width of the heating means.
 2. The air conditioner according toclaim 1, wherein air blown from the blower unit moves to the ventoutlets through a cold air passageway in a straight line.
 3. The airconditioner according to claim 2, further comprising: a mode doorrotatably disposed between the floor outlet and the vent outlets toadjust the degrees of opening of the floor outlet and the vent outlets,and the mode door being formed in a rotary door type of a dome shape. 4.The air conditioner according to claim 3, further comprising: a firsttemperature adjusting door arranged between the cooling means and theheating means; and a second temperature adjusting door arrangeddownstream the heating means, wherein the first temperature adjustingdoor closes an inflow passageway of the heating means and acommunication passageway of the mode door, and wherein the secondtemperature adjusting door guides an outflow passageway of the heatingmeans and an outflow passageway of the cooling mean.
 5. The airconditioner according to claim 4, further comprising: a warm airpassageway forming a flow passage in such a way that the air passingthrough the cooling means passes through the heating means; a first coldair passageway making the air passing through the cooling means by passthe heating means upwardly; and a second cold air passageway making theair passing through the cooling means by pass the heating meansdownwardly, wherein mixing zones where the air passing through the warmair passageway, the air passing through the first cold air passagewayand the air passing through the second cold air passageway are mixedtogether are formed at the floor outlet and at the vent outlets.
 6. Theair conditioner according to claim 5, wherein the mixing zones areformed inside the rotary type mode door.
 7. The air conditioneraccording to claim 5, wherein the warm air passageway is opened andclosed at an inflow position by the first temperature adjusting door andis opened and closed at an outflow position by the second temperatureadjusting door, wherein the first cold air passageway is opened andclosed by the second temperature adjusting door, and wherein the secondcold air passageway is directly communicated with the mode door and isopened and closed by the first temperature adjusting door.
 8. The airconditioner according to claim 5, wherein the second cold air passagewayis communicated with the vent outlets when the mode door completelycloses the vent outlets.